Brothers in Arms
by ChoCedric
Summary: AU. Cedric convinced Harry to take the Triwizard Cup alone. The day after, he does his best to comfort the young Gryffindor, to let him know he believes him about the frightening return of Voldemort which Harry was forced to witness.


Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Brothers in Arms

By: ChoCedric

Cedric Diggory was walking down the corridors of Hogwarts. He had requested to be alone, for there was someone who he needed to see. There was a very important conversation he needed to have, and he hoped he could find the person which he needed to have it with.

The person who he was trying to reach out to was none other than Harry Potter. Last night, at the third task of the Triwizard Tournament, Harry and Cedric had both landed at the Triwizard Cup at the exact same time. After a long argument and lots of pleading, Cedric had convinced Harry to take the cup for himself. The truth was, the only reason Cedric had wanted to win was to make his father proud, and honestly, he was sick of how Amos Diggory was always pressuring him to do better. For once, he wanted to rebel against him, to do an honorable thing, and he desperately wanted the younger boy to win. According to Cedric, Harry had been the better champion, anyway.

So Cedric had helped Harry limp to the cup, for Harry's leg had been badly injured by an acromantula. Harry had reluctantly gone, all the while pleading with Cedric to change his mind, but the older boy would have none of it. He'd smiled gently at the younger boy, and Harry had grasped a handle of the cup. But as soon as he'd touched it, he'd disappeared out of sight.

Pandemonium erupted then. Professor McGonagall, shaken, had helped Cedric out of the maze, back to his parents, friends, and devoted girlfriend, Cho Chang. He had been given big hugs and told over and over again that everything would be alright, but he'd been terrified for the younger boy. He was who-knows-where, all by himself, with no one to defend him if someone was out to attack him.

Minutes had passed, and suddenly, with a loud THUMP! Harry had materialized at the edge of the maze. He was bleeding and looked worn out, and he'd been clutching the Triwizard Cup tightly and claiming that You-Know-Who had returned. The look in his eyes had been so haunted, so vulnerable, and so sad that Cedric had instantly believed him.

The older champion's purpose today was to let Harry know that he'd always be there for him, to let him know he'd always back him up. He knew Harry had spent the night in the hospital wing, and desperately hoped that he was okay now. Albus Dumbledore had also announced this morning that Alastor Moody, this year's DADA teacher, had not actually been Alastor Moody at all, but an impostor who'd been posing as a Death Eater and had put Harry's name into the Goblet of Fire. Cedric felt a fierce, burning anger and self-hatred pulse through him as he thought of his first reaction to Harry's name being chosen for champion. He'd been resentful of the younger boy, convinced that he'd put his own name in. Even though most of that resentment was because he knew how his father would react, he still hated himself for ever thinking that the kind, modest Gryffindor had cheated.

As Cedric walked along, he figured that Harry would be alone too, for if Cedric would have ever gone through a terrible experience like Harry just had, he'd want to be by himself. Today was Sunday, so there were no classes in session. He walked down many corridors, looking in empty classrooms for the younger boy, praying that he would at least accept his company and listen to what he had to say.

Finally, he found him in one of the empty classrooms he was perusing. The Gryffindor was sitting at a desk, head in his hands. He wasn't crying, but he looked pretty miserable.

"Harry?" Cedric said softly, walking slowly into the room and putting a hand on the boy's shoulder.

Harry slowly looked up, and his haunted gaze landed on Cedric, looking into the older champion's gray eyes. "Cedric?" he said shakily.

"Yeah, Harry, it's me," Cedric said. "I know you probably want to be alone right now, but do you mind if I ... if I talk to you for a minute?"

Harry was silent for a few moments. Then he answered, "Okay," quietly.

"Harry," Cedric said earnestly, sitting himself down at the desk beside Harry's. "I just wanted to let you know that I ... that I believe you about You-Know-Who. Whatever happened, I'm really sorry."

Harry sighed, staring at Cedric with a blank expression on his face. "You do?" he asked. "Loads of people don't, including the Minister of Magic."

"My parents and I all believe you," Cedric assured him. Because of the chaos last night, the fact that he hadn't won the tournament hadn't even been a subject of discussion between him and his parents, especially his father. "Harry, I just want to let you know that I'm sorry I wasn't there with you. I would have defended you, fought right by your side if I could have."

"No, Cedric," Harry said, and the tone of his voice changed from one of blankness to one of hopelessness and fear. "You would've died, he would've killed you. It's a miracle I survived anyway, I shouldn't have. I only survived because of a huge coincidence."

Part of Cedric desperately wanted to ask Harry what this coincidence was, but the look of absolute heartbreak on Harry's face prevented him from doing so. "It doesn't matter," he said gently. "I would still have fought with you."

"You have so much to live for," Harry pleaded with him. "I know we don't know each other very well, but I don't want you to die. You have many people here who need you."

"As do you, Harry," Cedric said solemnly. "As do you. But I'm here to let you know that no matter what, I'll always be here for you now. I've got your back, Harry. I won't let anyone try to hurt you." He felt a surge of fierce protectiveness sweep over him.

A little bit of hope began to shine in Harry's emerald eyes. "You mean that?" he asked in a small voice.

"I mean it," Cedric answered sincerely. "Listen, one more thing. I'm sorry I ever doubted you about the Goblet of Fire."

"It's all right," said Harry immediately. "What reason did you have to believe I didn't put my name in?"

"Professor Dumbledore told us about Moody at breakfast," Cedric told him. "It just made me feel really bad that I ever disbelieved you."

"Don't worry about it," Harry said. "And I'm sorry, too."

"For what?" Cedric asked curiously.

"For ever being jealous of you," Harry answered apologetically. Cedric had known about Harry's jealousy; he had seen it in his eyes at the Yule Ball when he'd been dancing with Cho. "It was really stupid of me. Last night kind of showed me the bigger picture, you know? If you'd taken that cup with me, you ... you ... could've died."

"It's okay, Harry," Cedric said softly. "I'm sure everyone's jealous of someone once in their life. To be completely truthful, there was a part of me that was jealous of you."

"Of me?" asked Harry in shock. "Why?"

"Because everyone loves you," Cedric said. "Everyone worships you."

"I hate it, though," Harry told him. "They all love and worship me for something I can't even remember doing. I was only one."

"I realize that now," Cedric said, smiling gently at the younger teen. "And I want to get to know you better. I want to help you, to fight with you, to be your friend."

"Cedric, I don't want you to get killed," Harry pleaded, fear edging into his voice again.

"I'll be as careful as I can be, but you can't stop me from wanting to help you," Cedric said, squeezing Harry's shoulder in comfort. "That is, if you want to be friends. And I definitely accept your apology about the jealousy thing."

Harry gazed into Cedric's gray eyes for a few moments, and he saw the sincerity and resolve in them. "I'd like that," he said quietly.

"Good," Cedric said, and the two boys smiled at one another. "I'll always be here for you, Harry, if you need to talk."

Then, he drew the younger boy into an embrace, and the two stayed like that for awhile. This was how Cho, Ron, and Hermione found them, the two Hogwarts champions, clinging to one another, together in friendship, brothers in arms.


End file.
